Why me? No, really, why?
by DiamondBlink
Summary: A new girl arrives in Jump City, surrounded by mystery. And it seems our "friend" Slade has some plans regarding her...
1. The tourist

**Okay...this is my first try of a Teen Titans fanfiction...I know it's short but the next chapters will be better ^_^**

**The action is situated after the last episode, I guess, even though I used a conversation from the first season.**

Robin's POV

That was the fist time I had ever seen her.

It was a cold night, the streetlamps blinking hesitantly around Jump City, and I was riding my motorcycle back to the Titans' Tower. I had just stopped a minor jewelry theft by my own, and, as I was speeding back home, I saw a quite alarming commotion in the street. Just a gang of drunken teenagers, and there was nothing (too) wrong with that, yet. But apparently, they were harassing a girl.

"Stop it! Leave me alone!" she asked in a high-pitched tone, which signified panic, fear. She looked about my age, with black hair, a long coat of the same color which fluttered in the wind, and a pair of glasses reflecting the lights of the city. I had never seen her before. "I mean it!"

"So what" one of the guys replied, clearly from his tone that he lost the control of his actions to alcohol. "Common, why don'cha gimme a kiss, cutie? Eh?"

The others laughed, and began to circle the "target". I stopped my motorbike, and got off it, preparing to interfere. But she got them before me:

"That's it guys, you're DOOMED" her voice echoed trough the night. Now she didn't seem afraid anymore- more like resigned, like she wanted to avoid what was going to come. And then, raising her right hand, she snapped her fingers.

Simply that. And then a whirlwind surrounded her, sending the drunkards away, into walls or pylons. I could hear a little sight of relief, and then everything turned black. And by that I mean that a piece of paper flew in my face, covering my vision. I took it- it was the map of the city. And it apparently belonged to that girl.

"Hey, are you okay?" I asked, retrieving the map. She looked suspicious at me with her obsidian black eyes, but took it. And then she apparently recognized me and exclaimed:

"I guess I am…Hey, aren't you Robin? From the Teen Titans?"

"Yes, I am. Nice trick" I added, referring to the whirlwind.

"Thanks…I guess. Hey, I don't want to bother you" the girl said, fighting with the map in a typical helpless tourist manner, "but can you please TELL me where the Star Hotel is? I mean, my train just arrived here one hour ago and since then I've been searching for it almost everywhere!...Sorry, I guess I'm a bit desperate" she laughed, uneasy.

I looked, hoping she wasn't trying to make fun of me. A tourist?! And, even if she was…

"It's right in front of the train station." I said after a few seconds. "And it has a big banner pointing at it."

"Oh"

She looked embarrassed, but didn't say anything more. Who knows, maybe she was used to this kind of accidents. I've met people like her before- some of them were geniuses, but couldn't make a sandwich.

"So…erm, can you at least tell me where we are? I'm afraid I got a bit lost too…"

Really now. Was she serious?

"We are…" I said, and paused. The girl looked sincere, and if she did spoke the truth, then it means just telling her won't be too helpful. This kind of persons can get lost even in their own home. "…near the docks" I continued. "It can be a dangerous area at night, so it'd be safer not to walk here on your own. I could give you a ride to the hotel, if you want". Don't start imagining things now (especially if you're Starfire), I just didn't want to have her on my conscience in case she got attacked again.

You could see she was unsure of what to say. But just looking one more time to the gigantic unfolded city map seemed to drain all her strength, so she agreed.

"Well, if it's not too much of a bother…"

I didn't want to mention that it was 3 in the morning, and had probably a lot of other things to do in that moment than helping helpless teenage tourist girls. So I lied a bit "No, not at all", and asked if she had any luggage.

"No" she replied, with disarming sincerity. "I knew I would get lost, I always do. So I left my luggage at the station"

"Well, all right then". I got on the motorcycle, followed by her in a few seconds, and used my communicating device to call the police and the ambulance- after all; I couldn't just leave those guys lying there. After wondering one more time how did she mange to survive in everyday life, I started the engine, and the instant, tight, panicked (and still somewhat nice, though I'd never admit it) hug that almost stopped me from breathing told me she had never been on a motorbike before.

We got in front of the hotel in a few minutes, and then I remembered I didn't even know her name yet. When I asked her, she replied "Alex. Actually it's Alexandra, but I like Alex better". As she put her feet back on the ground, and let me finally breathe, she continued: "Thanks a lot, Robin. I can't imagine what I could've done if it hadn't been for you. But…I must ask you something. Please."

"What?"

"Don't tell anyone about my powers. Anyone. It's a secret. Please" she repeated.

And before I could ask anything or even agree, Alex disappeared behind the glass walls of Star Hotel, and left me wondering what was wrong with her.

***

Nobody's POV

"Can we please just order something?" Raven asked, bored. They had been arguing about half an hour already, and the black-haired girl was beginning to wonder if they'll ever eat again.

"As long as it's vegetarian." BB replied, quickly contradicted by Cyborg:

"Come on man! How can you deny me the all-meat experience?!"

"Dude. I've *been* most of those animals."

"I suggest a large pizza with Pickles, bananas and mint frosting." Starfire interfered, trying to calm down the atmosphere. Too bad it didn't succeed….

"Uh, Starfire? Not everything on the menu's a pizza topping." Robin explained to the alien girl.

"Oh..."

And so they kept arguing. Biting her lip in an attempt to prevent her laughter when hearing them, Alex gave up on reading the same sentence the 9th time, and, putting the books she was reading , "The Neverending Story", on her knees, she took one more bite of the delicious pizza calzone in her front. She loved it- in fact; she was beginning to like almost everything about this city.

Meanwhile, at a table nearby:

"Double pepperoni" Cyborg proposed.

"I'm not eating meat!"

"There's not meat in pepperoni!"

'Lol….these guys are simply hilarious' the girl thought, wondering briefly how five persons so different could be so close friends. It wasn't just about the looks- the serious Robin, the exuberant Starfire, the dark Raven, the half-machine-man Cyborg or the…well, green Beast Boy. It was visible in their minds too- at least for those who could see it, like Alex. She couldn't read minds, her ability being described more accurately as empathy, the feeling of other's emotions. But still, she could see enough.

At the other table, Raven blinked, surprised. She had a weird feeling in her head, something as light as a feather, but still present. She wondered why she was suspecting the unknown girl nearby as having anything to do with it.

***

Slade's POV

My, my. Look who just came to Jump City.


	2. Coincidence?

"_Like hell no", she said, pointing her sword at Demian. "Like I said- you're mad. Plural universes? I could have invented something more credible than this, boy. Now put that wand away and follow me."_

"_No! You don't understand, officer!" he shouted. "You've been tricked! Kin is somewhere out there, planning to return- we'll have to stop him-!"_

RING.

RIIIIIING.

RIIIING RING RING RIIING RING.

'I hate phone calls' the teenager though while putting her pencil away and raising slowly from the writing desk. 'There is obviously no one important, because no one that I care about has my number. And by the time I'll end the call I'll probably have forgotten all my ideas with the story…so, Demian tries to run away, Akira captures him with her special ability of blood-bending, the guy gets thrown into jail but at about that time his lawyer realizes he's speaking the truth. However, Kin controls everything so…'

Ouch.

There are a few things a person should avoid in order not to suddenly fall on the floor with a painful knee, and these include 1. Cardboard boxes which should definitely not be laying everywhere, even if you just moved in, and 2. Random thoughts that stop you to notice the respective boxes. But the cardboard boxes were everywhere in Alex's little hotel room, mostly filled with books, and the random thoughts were her nature. However, this incident had a good part (depending on what you classify as "good"): she found the telephone. It was on the floor, just in her front, and God knows why it was there and not on a table, like it should (actually it's because Alex needed some space on the bed table, and didn't bother to move it somewhere else). Extending her arm for the receptor while trying to get up, the black-haired girl picked up the phone and answered:

"Hello?". But the cold, metallic voice in her ear made her wish she had never come to Jump City in the first place, and even less to have answered the phone:

"It's nice to hear you again, Alex. Remember me-?"

SMASH. The girl hang up, basically destroying the phone in the process.

'Hell no' she thought, shivering, and stumbling over the same box, again. 'Not again. Why doesn't he leave me alone already?! How does he always find me?'

For over a year, Alex had been travelling around the globe, running from her nightmare.

New York, Tokyo, Bangkok, London- she'd seen them all, and not only. But every single time she tried to repair her life, to establish in a place, this man appeared. She never met him face to face, but when he phoned it meant she had to pack her things and go, or… else. Alex didn't want to think about it. Last time there had been a ninja sent after her.

'I have to run away' the thought boomed in her head.

But what could she solve, even if she did? Slade was going to follow her everywhere, on every frikin place on this planet. What could she do against him?!

"I'm just a teenager" Alex whispered to herself, her dark eyes widening and blinking as she tried to stop her tears. "And I'm mad. Why do I have to go through all this?!"

She slowly walked to the window, putting her hands and forehead on the cold glass. Just panicking was never going to solve things. Trying to relax and not to think too much, her eyes automatically registered what was going on in the world outside: a lady with a yellow hat walking on the street, the station, which looked a bit depressing in her opinion, the cloudy sky, cars, a freight train slowly exiting the station…

It exploded.

As the shockwave from the explosion hit her window and ears, Alex didn't move a muscle. But while her eyes were fixed on the cloud of dust raising from what had been a train just one minute ago, her face turned as white as paper. Alarms started. And the phone rang again.

'No. Please.'

A little suspicion formed in her mind, and grew until it overpowered her hope. It couldn't have been a coincidence. Coincidences never existed- not with _him_ around. As the phone continued to ring, making her head hurt, Alex moved hardly towards it and picked it up.

"It's rude to hang up on someone, Alex" her Nemesis stated in a frozen tone.

'Why?! Why the hell, you maniac?!' the girl shouted. However, just in her mind- her lips seemed paralyzed; her mouth seemed to have forgotten what speaking is.

"That was just a warning- in case it passes your mind to leave the city. It could happen to a passenger train next time, or, who knows…a hospital. Better think before you act. Don't think I would be as merciful as the other times- those were just tests."

'This explains a lot'

A pause in the conversation. And then the man added:

"It's disrespectful to not answer someone, as well"

Basically forcing her words out of her throat, Alex replied:

"…I-I'm sorry. I understand"

She'd rather swallowed fire than say that, but couldn't risk attracting the anger of this mad man. The voice replied, this time a bit…amused:

"…do you?" Alex wanted to punch either him or himself in the face, but didn't have the luxury of unnecessary actions at the moment.

"…no. No, you're right, I don't. The majority of my powers are useless to you, unless I get a new brain. Because they're based on the subconscious, and you know it as well- I can't control them. If I could…" she whispered, "then I wouldn't be in this situation. Running away and everything. I'm not even smart or strong-willed. Although, this can be a reason of why you chose me and not somebody else-"

"Enough." Slade interrupted her. "Don't worry, there are enough methods to change somebody's mind" he said in a tone that reminded Alex of the Spanish Inquisition. "Now, I give you three days to meet me- after that, I'm not responsible for my actions. And, I think you know already- those 'Titans' won't help you at all. More probable, they'll try to lock you in an asylum if they find out what you are"

The girl let the receptor from her hands drop, without even realizing it. The connection interrupted- but Slade didn't phone again- he had sent his message. Alex collapsed on one of the boxes, holding her head with her hands. He was right, she _was_ insane. More exactly, the poor girl was schizophrenic.

_Etymology_

_First attested 1910, from germanized Greek Schizophrenie "split mind", coined by Eugen Bleuler, from Greek σχιζοφρένεια (schizofreneia), from prefix σχιζο- schizo-, from Ancient Greek σκίζω (schizo) "to tear, to split, to cut" + Ancient Greek φρήν (fren) "mind, brain, diaphragm". (wiktionary)_

She could always feel her mind twisting in two separate directions. One was the so-called "real world", the place which everybody could see, feel, hear, taste. But the other one was a universe of her own – a place where nothing, and everything existed, and where the laws of probabilities meant nothing. But, for Alex, this place was at least as real, or even more, than the real world itself- a common sentiment for the victims of this mental disease, who could no longer distinguish hallucinations from truth, the psychiatrists said. But the girl had an advantage- she could control her visions.

This meant she could make them appear at any time she wanted, and control their content to a limited extent. One may ask, if she could do that, why did she keep having those illusions? Didn't that mean she wanted to have them? Isn't that wrong and insane enough? But such people don't understand- for Alex, her hallucinations were like playing on the computer, or taking drugs.

And addiction. Something to get her far away from reality. Something to make her forget everything, for a limited period of time.

And still…it was dangerous. As Alex attempted to enter her own universe, to calm down after Slade's phone call, a little alarm signal flashed in the back of her mind. Her mother. Apparently, she has had the same disease, even though the two never met. But everything she knew about her now is that she was in a hospital, catatonic.

She had twisted the roads between reality and imagination too much, and her mind failed to control her body anymore. Now, the woman was living just inside her brain in an endless dream, her body's functions supplied by machines. Alex was horrified by the perspective of ending the same way- though she'd have never realized it, if she did. But, as the girl had mentioned earlier in the conversation with Slade, her will power was weak. She was like a druggy desperate for the substance slowly killing him, even though he knows at least several people that either died or lost their minds because of it. And everything for a small piece of heaven, which is actually the pathway to hell.

Alex couldn't take it any longer. One more minute worrying about Slade, and she felt she'll go (even more) insane, with or without schizophrenia. Forgetting everything, and staring blindly in her front, she made the world dissolve in pastel colors around her. And then, the world was nothing but a dream.

***

In her room, Raven was meditating.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos" the girl repeated her mantra to no end. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos"

With her hood down, and her white legs crossed in a lotus pose, the girl was focusing her energy, calming her mind. Even though her father was long gone, and couldn't control her any longer, Raven felt that the daily meditations, far away from being a burden, were helping her. Especially now, when apparently Slade had come back. A minor train attack was proven to be his fault- why? Why would he do something so pointless?

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos"

Floating a few inches above the floor, the girl had her eyes closed. She had to concentrate.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos"

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos"

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos"

And then, behind Raven's closed eyelids, despite the darkness in the room, a light emerged.

It grew bigger and brighter, heading as a lightning towards the blue-haired Titan, and the girl soon discovered that she could he nothing to stop it- not even to open her eyes. In less than a second, the light filled all her vision and she found herself surrounded by fragment of thoughts, which most surely belonged to somebody else.

'A psychic attack' Raven thought, panicked. She had almost never sensed such a strong mental power before. But still- it wasn't harmful. If it resembled anything else in the world, that was the mind of a dreaming person, his subconscious.

'pointing her sword at Demian'

'Happiness. Peace. Freedom. Hope. Flight'

'it's an addiction'

'leave me alone'

'what are you doing in my world? Who are you?'

'are you as mad as me?'

After the last words echoed a few times in Raven's head, the voice disappeared, and the light faded out. The girl opened her violet eyes, just to discover that she was lying on the floor, and that, apparently, in contact with that strange mental power, her powers lost their focus and destroyed the room. Either this or it had been devastated by maniac robot monkeys with industrial chainsaws. Her eyebrows twitched as she studied the mess, and got up.

"Raven? Are you okay?" she heard Robin's voice calling from behind the thick titanium piece that was her bedroom's door. Putting her hood back on (that discouraged almost anyone from talking to her, even the leader), the dark Titan opened the door a few centimeters, just so she could see the boy. Hopefully, he won't be able to see into her room as well.

"Yes"

"Well, I've heard some noises coming from here and I came to check if…"

"I'm all right" Raven interrupted him. "I just accidentally dropped something on the floor." She added, and then closed the door in Robin's face. It wasn't her style- she normally respected the Boy Wonder, and even she doubted he could believe that lame excuse. But the guy had already enough problems with Slade returning, there was no need to bother him with an unknown telepath that possibly didn't even exist. If there was someone who could find out about him/her, then she was the right person for that.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos"

Oh wait- she knew that mental print. It was the same as the one she felt earlier that day, in the pizza store. Coincidence?

***

**Coincidence-**

You weren't paying attention to the other half of what was going on.

("Stand on Zanzibar"- by John Brunner)


	3. Faust

In the same small hotel room that we saw earlier, Alex was reading a book.

She was lying on a blue, rather comfortable couch, with one of her hands gently holding her head, while the other one was reiterative turning the pages. On her face you could see no sign of sadness or anger like you would have expected in her situation, in fact you could see no sign of any emotions besides a pale shade of interest in what she was reading. The book was called "Zanzibar", and was a part of the literature known as "Science-Fiction". Alex liked this kind of books, simply because for writing one you needed not only imagination, but also solid technical knowledge. And even more- the best SF writers didn't only talk about spaceships and aliens in their novels- but also about psychology, religion, life and death, patriotism and other things like that. Basically, like her English teacher once said, writing a story s like taking a piece of chalk, covering it in a few pieces of paper until it forms a little ball, then roll that ball in snow until it forms a giant snow ball. AKA- take a small piece of reality and cover it with your ideas. Usually, what it results is far more impressive than the original.

'Faust felt like this.' She read, and twitched. 'Faust felt like this. The stars move still, time runs, the clock will strike, the devil will come and Faustus must be damned ... How long did he buy with the currency of his soul—ten years?'

Nervous, she closed the book, thinking how much it actually resembled her situation.

'I'm just like Faust.' A thought crossed her mind. 'Just like him- only that I never had 10 years of freedom. Only 3 days…or better said two, since one already passed. Even though I detest him, I must admit Slade chose the time right- three days is a period of time short enough to make me worry like hell, but in the same time long enough to actually give me time to worry. I guess he's a genius, somehow.'

Biting her lower lip, Alex forced herself to keep thinking cold and rational, like what was going to happen had nothing to do with her, like it was just a story from a book. With the icy feeling of pure logic in her heart, she tried to stop the burning fever of hatred which tried to take over her, like poisoned needles stabbing her heart. You may say she had all the rights in the world to hate Slade, but I can quickly demolish your various argumentations with two simple statements:

If her mind was cool enough, Alex had better chances to find a solution to her problems.

Trust me. If you'd hate somebody with all your heart, won't you wish him the worst in the world? Well, here was the problem-Alex couldn't allow herself to do that. Because strange and unpleasant things tended to happen when she wished anything…you'll understand later.

((yes, I know you readers hate me for not explaining out loud))

***

Slade's POV(somehow…I used the 3rd person)

She was perfect.

As strong as Terra, or even stronger from some points of view. Almost as rational as Robin, but emotionally weak enough for this to mean nothing. As clumsy as a 2 year old, but as lucky as a goddess- this was Alex.

Her powers fit so brilliantly in his plan like they had been destined for it. Alone, this girl could do nothing but run away from everything. Alone and with his mentality, she would have ruled the world by the age of 12. As his apprentice, the rest of her willpower will be broken and she will remain, mentally, nothing more than a shadow. Correction: a shadow which will help _him_ rule the world.

Puah, ruling the world. It sounds so cliquish, but it's true. To prove that you're better than anyone else- this is the deal, the trick, everyone's secret aspiration. And what better way to prove it than proving that everyone else on the planet (and beyond, considering some of the heroes are aliens) can't stop you do whatever you please?

So amusing. It will be just too funny to beat them one after another…the Justice League, the Titans East, the Teen Titans…To watch them bite the dust and suffer, to watch them losing the trust of every single person on the planet, despaired.

Well, all except for Robin. He had other plans with him, like he would soon discover…

***

Scene:

A giant T-shaped building, made in majority of steel, titanium and glass, situated on a little island near a city called "Jump". Parts of this building come from a former alien spaceship which crashed on the island some time ago, as a result of 5 teenagers, known as the Teen Titans since then. It contains an impressive number of rooms: dorms, a living room mixed with a kitchen, training areas etc. This place is knows mostly as "The Titan's Tower", sometimes called "The giant T" or simply "The T". Only 5 persons and a weird creature which resembles a moth caterpillar of the size of a pillow(known as "Silky") are allowed to call this place "home".

Inhabittants:

Robin-sometimes called the Boy Wonder. Former sidekick of the Dark Knight(Batman), martial artist and overall genius. Currently in his office, trying to solve the puzzle of an apparent random attack.

Starfire- alien from Tamaran. Nice with everybody and with a…rather unusual vocabulary, which often involves adding "friend" as a title in front of people's names. Currently in her room, preparing to go to what she calls "the mall of shopping" along with the other female member of the team, Raven.

Beast Boy-best described as "green". Vegetarian, former member of the Doom Patrol, has metamorphic abilities and a sense of humor which tends to exasperate anyone but him. Currently in the living room, playing "Zombie Samurai II"(the pirated edition) with Cyborg.

Cyborg- former athlete, half man-half machine, has superhuman strength and an impressive sonic cannon in his arm. Current whereabouts (see B.B.) Adding: he's trying to cheat.

Raven- daughter of an interdimensional demon(Trigon) and a woman(Arella). Was destined to destroy the world and she actually did that, just to miraculously save everything after that like in a K-rated cartoon. Currently in the living room, reading something entitled "Mistress of the Art of Death" (which, despite of the title, it's not a devilish spell book but an innocent historic thriller) while waiting for Starfire, mentally debating if to use her powers to convince BB and Cyborg to turn off the volume at that stupid game.

Overall, good. The incident? A beep. More exactly a beep-BEEP-BEEEEP from the communicators, which meant there was trouble in town. And when there is trouble, people in Jump City knew who to call. The Titans, logic, if you hadn't already noticed that.

***

Scene 2: the apartment. A phone rings, and the 10 second long conversation results with Alex shouting (after closing the phone): "OH WHAT THE *BEEP*, WHEN THE *BEEP* WILL MY LIFE STOP GETTING SO *BEEP*ING WORSE? SURELY NOT WHILE THIS *BEEP*ING SLADE IS AROUND WITH HIS *BEEP*ING "TESTS"! "

The girl ran towards her suitcase (which was still unpacked) and began to throw mountains clothes out of it. She needed…well, something like a training suit now. But preferably without any logo, otherwise Nike or Adidas would sue her if she survived. Yes, acting like a hero in clothes made by someone famous could cause that, simply because people would associate the hero with the company and then they would buy less from other companies. (Alex knew that since she saved a random mall dressed in Dolce&Gabbana clothes, which weren't even her style. Even one week later, the D&G shop in that mall still had impressive sales, and other shops were beginning to mention it's not fair). In the end, she found what she was searching for- a simple black T-Shirt and a pair of black pants with the mention "Made in Liechtenstein". 'Good enough. ', she thought. After changing her pajamas with these, Alex searched a bit more, for a bag of souvenirs she had from Venice. You know, tourist stuff…fans, a little glass cat from San Murano, and especially a mask which she bought there with about 2 times the normal price. She put it on and looked in the mirror, realizing disappointed that the effect was more of I'm-going-to-a-carnival-and-I-was-too-lazy-to-get-the whole-costume than I'm-a-superhero-bad-guys-beware. Oh, whatever, she had no time for a better outfit. Taking her mask off (it would have been weird to wear it in the hotel, for countless reasons) she put on her long coat, and, forgetting to lock her door, the girl began to run as fast as she could towards…

'…oh, wait, I don't know' Alex, realized, shocked. 'I have no idea where the University is, and even less about the FBI laboratories he spoke about.' Turning around, the girl almost collided with an old chambermaid, which was cleaning the hallway floor with a mop.

"I'm sorry", the girl said, looking at the wrinkled face of the woman. Then, something suddenly made "TING" in her head- an idea. "Excuse me, could you please tell me where the University is?"

"WHAT? What did you say? Speak louder!" the maid basically shouted in Alex's ears. "Children nowadays, always in a hurry and with no respect for the elders…"

"I said…" Alex attempted.

"WHAT?!"

"I SAID, I APPOLOGISE AND COULD YOU PLESE TELL ME WHERE THE UNIVERSITY IS?!"

"What did you say? The University? Do you want to go to the University?"

"YES!"

"Then you must study a lot, dear, only smart people go to the University. You shouldn't lose your time in bars and cafes at this hour; you should go to school and learn!"

"BUT I DON'T WANT TO GO TO STUDY THERE! I WANT JUST TO GO THERE! AND I'M NOT GOING IN BARS! I'M IN A HURRY, PLEASE!"

"What did you say?! You don't want to study? But that's bad, girl…If you don't study you'll never get someone and when you'll get older you'll have no good job…so you'll be mopping the floor, like me. Don't be in such a hurry to go in bars…look, I remember, for example…in 1920? Or was it '40? Nevermind, that's when I…"

Alex freaked out. If there was anything else scarier than a deaf elder, this was a deaf elder trying to tell you his/her life story. Just as the girl wondered if it would have been too obvious if she simply began to run away screaming, a door opened and a middle aged man appeared. He was wearing round glasses and a blue housecoat with the hotel's insignia. Alex let out a small sight, in relief. If she could just talk to him for a minute and ask about her destination then she'll be able to leave…or maybe not?

"Was ist mit diese Larm?" the man said, visibly irritated. "Bist du verruckt, ich mochte jetz schlafen! Ich muss ausgeruht sein weil spatter muss ich mit dem Minister treffen, den Rindfleischetikettierungsüberwachungsaufgabenübertragungsgesetz zu diskutieren!"

The girl froze, completely freaked out. If there was anything worse than….anything in this world, that was a kilometric German word. She wondered if fate had something against her today.

'Oh, dammit, I wish I won't be too late' the girl thought instinctively, even pronouncing in her mind the "w" word, the one which had recently become for her synonym with "doom". 'Oh God…if you exist (which I doubt but whatever) please help me out of this situation!!!'

***

Somewhere nearby the University of Jump City, there was a small laboratory financed by FBI. Its objective was developing weapons, in case the Russians/Chinese/aliens/Justice League/Teen Titans/rabid monkeys decided to attack, like there weren't enough wars and paranoid people on this planet already. To be precise, the laboratory was situated 20 floors under the University itself and was protected by a complete set of paranoid defense systems- lasers, robots, metal doors equipped with the latest technology of reading the eye-print and which made "whoosh" when they closed. Now, I normally disagree with this( except for the doors making "woosh". That's cool) because it shows a complete lack of trust in other people, but the FBI paranoia becomes understandable when you think a few dozens of robots managed to break in in about…let's say, 15 minutes? I think there's no need to mention that the robots were humanoid, with black masks instead of faces and colored in brown, black and silver. With an "S" on their suits- if you didn't realize who was controlling them by now then you may as well give up reading.

Like I said before, the defense system lasted some time –long enough for people to realize their uselessness- well, half uselessness, since they gave the Teen Titans enough time to arrive. And at about 10 minutes after the Titans, another person arrived there too. But we'll talk about her more in the next chapter. Meanwhile…

***

_15 minutes earlier_

Running like a black cat (but bringing bad luck to nobody else but herself, as I think you've noticed), Alex exited the hotel. She was so happy to have accidentally found that German guy, who kindly explained her how to get to the University, and if you wonder, yes, she knew German good enough for a simple conversation. As the wind and fresh air struck her in the face, the girl realized she had no money at her, so she couldn't afford to take a taxi.

One minute searching for the bus station, and then she took the wrong bus.

She asked the driver to stop and he listened to her. Alex ran back to the station just in time to lose the right bus, and she had to wait for another one.

In the third bus, there was a person controlling the tickets. Alex had no ticket and no ID, so the rule was to go to the end of the bus line. However she begged a bit and mentioned that she was visiting "her bigger sister, doctor in astronomy" at the University, so the controller let her go "this time".

Luck and bad luck, wishes, hopes. A girl which does not want to be a hero or a villain, but is forced by surroundings to become both.

There was no lie when Slade said she could control the world with her powers.

**Disclaimer**

**I do not own:**

**-Teen Titans(doh!)**

**-the books mentioned in this chapter- "Zanzibar" by John Brunner and "Mistress of the art of death" by Ariana Franklin**

**However I own:**

**-the storyline(even if it's crappy)**

**-"Zombie Samurai II", the pirated edition. I mean I invented it ^^'**

**The conversation in German means: "What's with this noise? I want to sleep now! I must be fresh while I must meet later with the Minister to talk about a law that has something to do with how beef is labeled"**

**I used "Rindfleischetikettierungsüberwachungsaufgabenübertragungsgesetz" ( XD I can't even pronounce it) while it's the longest word in German at the moment and it seemed interesting. This is the name of a law that has to do with how beef is labeled. If I made any mistakes in German, please correct me, after all I'm not perfect and German is just my third language.**

**I'm really sorry I confuse you even more in this chapter, but everything will hopefully be clear…in one or 2 chapters. Probably in 2, while the next one will be the description of the fight. Thanks for the patience and the helpful reviews.**

**PS: did you know "Faust" means "lucky" in Latin and that the book was written by a German author? I had no idea when writing this, really. But I love coincidences o_O.**


	4. Tests1

**Sorry for lateness. As I said in the previous chapter, I planned to make this chapter a really cool and interesting description of a fight. Which failed for the simple reason that I didn't get to the fighting scene yet. Oh well. When I try to write something my ideas tend to be like chewing gum, it appears to be something insignificant at first and then it gets longer and longer and…you should start reading now ^^'**

Alex's POV

I entered the FBI laboratory, and my shoes make a distinct clicking sound on the metal floor as I run towards the noise. I put my mask on- now I probably look as ridiculous as possible, but when you want to keep your identity a secret you must be serious about it (though I can't see anything clearly now, because I had to take off my glasses in order to wear it. But it doesn't matter that much, it just adds a bit of improbability to the local time-space-continuum, and I have no idea if that's good or bad). And I also begin to focus- I push my mind somewhere between conscious and subconscious, and my heart begins to beat a bit faster.

I wish something to happen, so it might happen. If it might, it could. If it could, it should. If it should, it shall.

It will, because I want it.

(the typical spoiled kid kind of phrase. Just that in my case there's something more)

I enter a room, the one from which the noise is coming from. My eyes scan the room for a bit: metal walls, a chip kept under glass, the Teen Titans, robots. The last two are fighting. I'm not sure how to interfere- the teenagers obviously need my help, but just waving and saying something like "Hello people!!!" like in fanfictions doesn't have many chances to work now. So…oh, you wonder why I said 'for a bit'? Simple- after two seconds, almost 10 androids appeared to have noticed me and began to head in my direction. Great, right? It gets even "better" – I had one more second of noticing the emotions of the people around me, before panicking like hell. And guess what? I'm a total failure.

Robin had noticed, _and _recognized me, I feel it. Raven has a similar sentiment, though I can't understand why. I don't know her. Yeh, I guess the mask was simply useless- I'd like to get it off now and put my glasses back, but it would seem just awkward to do that in this moment –simply because I'm being attacked, remember? I try to think what could normally knock out robots programmed as assassins which could probably kill me in less than 1 hit, and my mind begins to play 'associations' on its own.

Robots- they are related to computers. More exactly, they are controlled by computers. And the most useful thing about computers I can remember? They malfunction a lot, sometimes on their own. Could these robots malfunction? It doesn't seem like I have any chance of any of them doing this…

Correction: it seems like this only for you. I, personally, _wish_ and _know_ that all of them _will_ malfunction, and that this will happen _now._

They head towards me, so now I can see the reflection of the neon lights on their blank black faces. I stare at them, and I know that, from behind their emotionless shiny eyes (which are actually cameras), Slade is staring at me, wondering what will I do next. Or maybe he isn't wondering- maybe he already predicted what I am going to do?

Whatever. I keep glaring at the robot in the front, and Robin shouts "watch out", "get out of the way", "run" or something like that. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately. After all, I didn't come here to be saved), he or any other Titan is too busy fighting to interfere at the moment. They sure think I'm crazy, and I am, but not because of the reason they think of. The first robot is now at one and a half meters away, and I notice briefly that he's ready to attack. Fear appears to suddenly stab me, but it's too late to turn back. I continue concentrating in my weird way (basically I do this the same way you daydream, it's only I have to remain half-rational all the time), and I continue wishing for the robots to malfunction because nothing else could save me now.

I'm half lost in my own world, almost drowned in my own imagination. You see- my world of schizophrenic illusions is the source of my powers, and when I'm in contact with it I can do anything. But if I'm not careful enough, then I can lose the contact with the real world (like I've actually done yesterday, but intentionally). And then not even all the powers in the world could save me if I get attacked.

***

Robin's POV

It's her again.

Alex was her name, right? The clumsy girl from before- with the same black jacket and messy black hair, only this time she has a mask that covers half of her face. Or maybe she just pretended to be clumsy? I have no idea, but as I look at her now I see nothing- no signs of her previous exuberance, no emotions at all. Somehow, she looks like lost in another world- her black eyes are as lifeless as two pieces of coal.

And being absent… is a very irrational thing to do as you're just getting attacked by Slade's robots. IS SHE INSANE?! WHAT THE…?! I shout at her to watch out, but this girl simply ignores me. So I attempt to throw some Birdarangs to get rid of the robots around her. They are blocked by some other androids, and as I try to get closer and help her I notice that Slade's metallic servants attack me even more fiercely than before- like their boss wouldn't want me to interfere. As I continue to fight, I can not stop but wonder: why? A few more seconds pass.

And then…something clearly happens, though the girl appears to have done nothing, not even to snap her fingers like the last time. But the robots in her front begin to fall one by one, like shot with an invisible machine gun, and she begins to walk gracefully towards the chip. However, her eyes are still empty behind the mask and this makes her look like she's a doll being pulled by strings. A bit…disturbing, somehow.

***

Raven's POV

It's her.

The girl. The telepath- it's the same person, I can feel it in her mind. She may not look very impressive (partially because of the blue and gold Venetian mask that covers her face), but her absent expression as she walks towards the centre of the room intrigues me- I can feel this in her mind too. And I don't mean that she's not thinking of the present situation, but that a part of her mind appears to be…somewhere else. Anywhere else, but not inside her head, like it should. As she advances forward, slowly and silently, robots continue to fall in her front.

I'm curious- what is she doing here? What was she doing earlier, in my mind? Seeing that she doesn't intend to present herself first, I teleport near her and use my powers to smash some of the androids, since she looked like she could use a bit of help. But, even though her reply to my intervention was polite, wasn't quite what I expected: maybe a "hi", "nice to meet you", stuff like that. But instead, she says, looking at me scared:

"Please…leave! Let me focus!" Her eyes are normal now, and her mind seemed to have come back.

And, for an unknown reason, this means she'd lost her ability to fight too. Robots keep attacking, and I see her biting her lower lip. Attempting to run away, the girl does something I believed to happen only in movies- she stumbles over her own legs and falls to the floor.

Just in time to avoid a punch from one of the robots. I create a shield around us with my powers to give her time to get up, and she does that awfully slow considering my abilities' limitations. But even though unharmed, this girl seems still powerless and simply freaked out. So I take her hand and raise us both in the air, somehow away from the danger. Of course, there are still some robots trying to shoot us. But, somehow, none of the bullets hit…

"Thank you. Could you take me near the chip, please?"

In the heat of the battle, it takes me a few seconds to realize she said something. I turn towards her and see her eyes opening, just to reveal that blank expression again. And even though her face is as white as paper, her voice sounds…different from before. Like she has no doubt of what she can and will do. But in the same time, emptied of any human emotion.

"You saw what I can do. I can help you win, if I don't lose my concentration." The girl continues, in the same tone. I decide to listen to her(after all, she seems to be an ally), and I condense all the questions that fill my mind in a single one:

"Who are you?"

A few seconds pass, until we get near the chip's glass case and she answers: "Nobody important enough". It irritates me when people say things like that- after all, if I didn't consider it to be important enough I wouldn't have bothered to ask. Because, unless _some_ people (BB for example) I actually think before opening my mouth. But I have no time to ask again now, since we're obviously outnumbered. And all miss-nobody-important appears to do is staring at that chip, with her fingers touching the glass. AKA: I have to fight on my own.

I hope she doesn't intend to break the case. I try to warn her about this, but she pays no attention to me. Simply because Robin showed us the plans for this thing before we left- the case is filled with acid poisoned gas, one vicious kind that not only attacks the respiratory system but also the skin when in contact. And, apparently, it propagates in air so fast it could fill the whole room in less than 30 seconds. Instant death. But all the black-haired girl does reply is:

"It's chip for a weapon, right?"

I have no idea where she knows that from, but it's true. Probably Robin will have a discussion with an FBI official after this, relating the developing of weapons in our city, in secrecy and under a building full of innocent students. We've just found that out from the police.

"Yes, it is."I say- I would've continued with an acid remark about the inopportunity of chit-chatting in the middle of a fight, but something about this girl shocks me.

Her power…she…does, something. Somehow, right now. I would say I can feel it in the air, but it's wrong – it's deeper than that, touching the very fabric of space continuum. For the first time in her "absent" state, a muscle moves on her face(excepting her lips). It's just a tremble of her right eyebrow.

But in the world of her thoughts this is more, much more. Just like a butterfly creating a hurricane, but something nobody else than me can feel. She is breathing heavily and says, her clear voice echoing weirdly:

"I want…this to never be used to harm people. I want this to have an unnoticed design error that would make it useless. I want this to never function."

Something happened, though on the outside nothing changes- except that she falls exhausted on her knees. Robots are still attacking, and I begin to wonder if I actually imagined everything.

But wait- robots stopped attacking.

They moved out of the way, so we could see directly towards the exit door. Like a clear path to escape. Did she do that too…?

No.

It can't be.

Near the door, standing like a nightmare that he is, there is Slade.

"You're late, Alex. I was beginning to expect you wouldn't come anymore"

He's looking at the masked girl, and she is looking at him with "normal", scared eyes. Somehow defiant. But the wrong thing is…she got captured by a robot while I wasn't paying attention. Her arms are hold in her back, a knife is pointed at her throat, and it's clearly what would happen if I were to interfere. Me or anybody else. Just to be clear, the masked man pointed out:

"Don't move, Titans. Or she dies."

"What do you want, Slade?" asks Robin. But he's simply ignored, and the girl, who is apparently named Alex, answers:

"That's a lie."

"What?"

"You never expected me not to come."

Slade's only eye twitches, in irritation, and the robot which holds the girl twists her arms even more. She lets out a small cry of pain, and the man replies:

"Don't try to sound smarter, girl, even if you're an empath. You're just not intelligent enough. For example- the chip. Your powers will work fine this time, that piece of electronics is never going to do anything. _Because it's a fake_."

Robin's POV

"it's a fake."

The girl blinks a few times, and replies with a small sight:

"I guess it's logic. For you to have already stolen that, I mean. And replace it."

The chip was stolen. With no warning, from an FBI top-secret laboratory, with no evidence that the theft even took place. And that girl doesn't seem surprised at all. She continued:

"But then I want to know, why the heck do I have to be here? Tell me where that bomb is and let me go already. After all" the girl continues, her eyes turning empty for a second. The robot which was holding her falls to the floor. "The deal was three days. There are still 2 to go, as far as I can remeber."

'The bomb? The deal?'

"What bomb? What deal?" I ask, looking at both her and Slade. And for the first time, the man bothers to answer:

"The detonating device in the University above. It's set to explode in about…15 minutes." Turning back to Alex, he said: "I never mentioned I'd say its location, as far as I can remember. So…good luck finding it. That's your specialization, right? I thought I'd give you something to do while waiting". I could swear he was smirking under his mask. As the girl was out of immediate danger, I prepared to attack him.

Slade, with his normal icy calm, took out a commutator and pushed a red button. For a second, nothing happened- only that a led blinked a few times, in the corner of the glass case.

In an instant, that led exploded. The air in the box dilated so fast, the case broke. The poison began to expand.

And one second later, it was surrounded by a bubble of black energy (Thank you, Raven) and condensed more and more, until it disappeared. But until then, Slade was long gone.

I saw Alex falling once more to her knees, trembling.

Alex's POV

"Because it's a fake"

"I guess it's logic. For you to have already stolen that, I mean. And replace it." I say, sighting.

It's so obvious- how could I not realize that earlier?

He knew that my first reflex would be to get rid of the chip, simply because I'm a pacifist.

(Okay…not quite a pacifist, since I'm being forced to fight a lot. But world peace is one of my main WISHES -and I really hope it won't turn bad like the other ones did)

Having me use my power on an imitation had two advantages: avoiding this reflex I mentioned earlier, and draining me of my powers. After all, he couldn't risk me _wishing_ him to be caught, even more since he came in person (I suppose he normally doesn't fight the Titans directly. Or at least this is what I'd do if I were him- I'd send a robotic copy of myself in my place. But since I'm an empath it was obvious not going to work this time, simply because robots don't think.)

So now I'm confused. And angry, I guess, though I shouldn't be. Anger is the shortest path to hatred, hatred is the way to fury. And to be furious means to lose your ration, to think things that you shouldn't and that you wouldn't even want to think.

And did you ever notice, that more than 70% of your thoughts are wishes?

I ask him about the object of my blackmail – the bomb. Or at least I guess it's a bomb, because of his warning at the phone "if you don't come I'll blow up the University. You have 30 minutes" or something like that. I needed 25, but it was clearly that I'd arrive on time. After all, I _wished_ it. And even more than this, I'm trained with time related wishes- all those years I left my home too late, one day after another, and ran for the bus but still got to school in the last minute taught me enough. Sometimes I left my house on time, but I was late, simply because I was thinking at something else and not focusing on the wish.

Wishes are weird.

And of course, he refuses to say anything. He lets me and my luck to find the bomb. But he cheats (somehow) – seeing that I recovered enough to short-circuit another robot, he decides not to risk me _wishing_ for the Titans to follow him. So he uses a distraction- he breaks the poison-filled case.

And, as he knows, it's not only a distraction. It's a hit. For me at least.

It was too close.

Sometimes things move too fast for me to have the time to do(to think!) anything about them. Bullets are a great example. Or ninjas. Explosions. Anyway, if this happens when I'm in that half-absent state of mine, I block.

Like now. He left for a few seconds, but my mind appears to be like a broken record- it oscillates between my normal self and the part of me which can use my powers. It's…like a reaction to being on the edge of death, I guess. And I can barely think anything. I can barely see, or hear anything, and I barely notice when the Titans leave for the building above, in order to find the detonating device and evacuate the people inside.

"What deal do you have with Slade?"

It's Robin's voice, and it appears to come from a great distance.

Though he's not far. He's just near me, and his hand is holding my shoulder, like he wouldn't want me to run away. I sense various sentiments in his mind- surprise, anger, hatred (I hope that's towards Slade, and not me. But I suppose I shouldn't do that. After all, hoping bad things is very close to wanting bad things, and that's…simply not good), and suspicion. Especially suspicion. I don't blame him, I probably don't look like I can be trusted. And possibly the only thing that stopped him think that I'm working for Slade and that this was all a really elaborate plan, was that few people in the world could fake my helplessness and clumsiness when I'm not using my powers. I mean, to stumble over my own legs while running? That's simply stupid- and I didn't even fake it, unfortunately.

I can't help.

In my current state, I'd rather get in the way than actually help with finding the bomb. My powers are not working correctly. Robin wants answers, and I'm not sure if I could avoid his questions much time.

So I'd better run. And, as soon as I recover, wish for the bomb to not explode.

I have to run.

I get up, and open my mouth like I'm going to say something. The words that come out of it are relatively neutral, made only to waste time but actually not saying anything:

"What, didn't you realize, Boy Wonder?"

He's faster than me. He knows martial arts. And still, if I begin to run when my status oscillates to the part of my mind with the powers, I have a chance.

"How come? Can't you realize that…" I add. Still not saying anything, still wasting time.

And then, with a "click", my powers come back. I know it won't hold for long- I'm lucky if it'll last 30 seconds. So I have to move as fast as possible. And _think_ as fast as possible. I raise my right hand and snap my fingers.

'I wish this works'

This is one of powers that are closest to impossible. To snap my fingers, and create a whirlwind- I did it with a lot of practice and based on one of my favorite theories- the chaos one. It says, simply, that the flutter of a butterfly's wings can create a hurricane.

Well, it says more than that. But if I start to question my ideas I start to question my powers. And now it's not quite the time for that. Robin, surprised, is pushed back and falls to the floor.

'I hope it works' I think while beginning to run.

I didn't even pay attention to my direction. So, of course, I get to run a few meters before realizing I'm going towards a closed door. Absolutely typical.

What are the chances of the mechanism of the door being so damaged in the fight that just took place…so damaged that it will open now, in my front? You may say: none. But it's not true- it's something with a zero, a coma, followed by a number of zeros of cosmic proportions and a one (in percents). I get in front of the door.

It's closed.

Somewhere in my back, I hear Robin heading towards me. My wish worked pretty nice, considering the circumstances. But still pretty useless if the door wouldn't open…I'm irritated. Why don't I always get what I want?

So I send a powerful kick (well, at least as powerful as I can. I'm not a very strong person. In fact I'm pretty weak) towards that useless piece of metal. Of course, my foot loses the mutual confrontation and begins to hurt like hell.

And apparently, connects some wires in the door's mechanism. The door opens on half, and I barely have enough time to exit the room before Robin is just behind me.

If kicking a door to open it is logic, then kicking it again to close it should be too. Because I want it.

And it works. From behind the (now) closed door, I continue my proposition:

"Can't you realize that I can't say anything?" I ask. "I thought it was obvious I'm being blackmailed"

"Alex…Wait." I hear his voice behind the 10cm of metal, after a short break. "I've dealt with Slade before- I can help you!"

He's irritatingly sincere; I can feel it in his mind. He would help me- and I'd probably say 'okay, Robin, I agree, let's go talk about my problems at a cup of hot chocolate and then I could help you kick Slade's butt'. But there were some clear points in my conversation with Slade, and between them was the fact that he could detonate that damn bomb at any time he likes. And that I'm not allowed to say anything about our deal…yet. He mentioned briefly that the explosion of the University would not affect the underground laboratory at all.

Translation (if you needed it): It's obvious that his robots have microphones inserted, which probably are still working. I could make them malfunction, but definitely not with my powers like now, and, anyway, destroying them would be like saying "I'm going to talk something I don't want you to hear". So if I say anything, I risk him detonating the bomb. Understood?

"So you know why I can't speak" I reply. "Look, I just want to say that I apologize for what will happen in two days time. Really."

I turn around and leave. Probably he said something after this, but I didn't notice- I was too focused on my own thoughts. Barely realizing, I let a few more words escape my mouth:

"It's not like you'd want to help me if you knew me well enough, anyway…"

***

(still)Alex's POV

You see, I think I'm just too smart for my own good, and that makes me so stupid.

I think I have a shade of paranoia in my personality- either this or I'm a perfectionist. If the Titans caught me, everything would have been okay, except for Slade killing some people. I could have been stupid, and let myself be found without any problems. And then I could dye my hair, change my name to Alecsandrina and move to Russia. Or Siberia. But no- I had to imagine every single possibility.

First things first- my hotel room. Robin knows where I live, so I had to steal one dollar from one of the guards and use it for a phone call. I used one of the public phones in the University above- since there had been a bomb threat, there was nobody there(just so I make myself clear, I entered the University after some time passed and I was certain nothing would explode). I phoned the Star Hotel's reception- and made a deal with the reception man.

5$ for telling I'm not there. 100$for telling the same thing to the Titans. An additional 50 for saying I left this morning and erasing me from the register. 50 again so I could keep using my room.

It's…an expensive bribe, even for me. But I knew he would accept it, after all there was something in his mind that made me think he was a corruptible man. I warned him to switch posts with another of the hotel's employees today, since I didn't pay 205 bucks so Raven could instantly read my whereabouts in his mind.

And then, I still wasn't satisfied. What if the Titans saw me on my way back? Because, like I said before, this mask is extremely useless. So, following the maps on the walls, I headed towards the sports hall. Because, normally, nearby it are the dressing rooms. So I found the girls' dressing room and changed my clothes with others (I'm pretty tall for my age, so size was not so big of a problem). Then I used some hair clips I found/stole to make another haircut.

And then, I exited the building on the back door.

I headed towards my hotel, and entered my apartment.

And now I'm trying to keep myself from destroying or even noticing the phone, and I listen to some music. I'd like to get lost in my world once again, but now, with my powers like this…it's risky. Just so I could feel psychologically better, I didn't even move the phone from the floor, even though I tend to stumble into it quite a lot. If I don't move it, I can just pretend it doesn't exist. And that nobody is going to call me and ruin my life.

I'm a bit irritated by the phone's color- it's onyx. A black phone. Fits my situation, I guess.

Yes, I know it's a bad pun.

((the pun : think at how the word "blackmail" is formed and you'll realize it))

***

Nobody's POV

Unless of what some people probably think, the Titans didn't found the bomb.

It was the 21-year-old Jaques Hale, student in the third year in informatics who did that. He was just skipping the sports class, when he found a strange metallic box in a rather deserted area of the building, where rarely everybody went (and which, as a result, was a great place for skipping classes for those who knew of it).

Unless some people think, a normal bomb doesn't always look like in American movies.

For example, who give movie directors that stupid idea that a bomb always has a screen with phosphorescent digits which show the exact time till the explosion? And the ticking- really, which real bombs ever make tick-tock? If they did, don't you think we'll have more innocent people still alive and less terrorists in liberty? Anyway, I'd be, as a villain, embarrassed with myself if I made a bomb that would look so cliquish.

Slade was intelligent enough- the bomb looked like a metallic parallelepiped, and since it didn't do anything Jaques classified it as "harmless". The boy could have just left it there, but he was bored. He wanted a cigarette and the only shop in the University was nearby the secretariat.

If he simply went there…a teacher could always ask him what the hell he was doing. But, well, that box looked brand new. Maybe someone had forgotten it there. And even if it wasn't like that, it looked like a decent excuse. His idea: bring the box to the secretariat (where usually lost objects were kept), and use this walk as an excuse to buy some cigars. And a sandwich. And maybe a Coke.

But he didn't have the time to. As he was just entering the secretariat, he heard the fire alarm and he saw, in the room, the Teen Titans explaining the principal the need of evacuating the building. Apparently, there was a bomb in the school…

If Jaques didn't know that bombs tend to explode on impact, he would have let the silvery box fall. But still, his hands had a nervous tremble, as well as his voice when he said:

"W-well, I k-kinda found th-this"

'Why is this goth girl looking so weird at me?' he though.

***

Robin's POV

"Give me that" I said as I carefully took the box out of the student's shaking hands. I put it on the desk, and, if there was any doubt any of us had relating that object, it vanished when it opened with a click, like a laptop, revealing a screen and a keyboard.

The screen blinked a few times, and then Slade appeared on it.

My worst enemy.

As usual, neither his mask nor his only eye showed any emotion. Not the same could be said about his voice, though.

"Bad timing, Titans" he mocked us. "Now you are basing on luck to do your job?"

"What do you want?" I asked for the second time that day, the words burning my mouth. If looks could kill, now Slade would be probably enjoying a nice picnic in Hell right now.

"I assure you, not a friendly discussion. Don't forget what this device is, after all-" he said, and I noticed the white timer on the screen. I showed 10:04. Then it changed to 10:03, 10:02, 10:01…Of course-it was still a bomb.

"Eh…dude, can't we just shot-circuit that before it blows up?" Beast Boy whispered in my back.

It was a mumble almost impossible to hear- but Slade noticed it. His eye twitched.

"I wouldn't advise you to, unless you're planning suicide. That device is filled with enough sensors, set to trigger auto destruction in case you're trying to stop it. Or move it more than a meter from the place it's now in"

So, the only possibility left…

"What's the password?" I asked.

"Now, now, Robin. Shouldn't you make sure the civilians are safe first?" the man continued in the same tone. The translation: I'm not going to speak while the others are still there. I turned towards my teammates and asked them to leave. To make sure the evacuation goes on according to the plan. They commented, but why don't they realize _we don't have the time for a choice?_

"Robin- we shouldn't go" Raven said, piercing me with her eyes. Behind her words, there's a warning: 'remember what happened the last time'.

"Robin" Starfire replied too, her green eyes looking nervous from me to the screen and then back to me. I know that it hurt her to leave now, like this, considering what had happened in the past. Swallowing the first words that came into my mind ('It'll be all right'), I simply say 'Go!', and, hesitantly, they follow my order. One by one, Raven, Cyborg, Beast Boy, Starfire, that other guy and the principal leave, and I remain to discuss the fate of a hundred people with an insane mastermind.

***

Raven's POV

There's something just…wrong about that guy.

Somehow, if I focus hard enough, I have a weird sensation around him. Like he shouldn't be here at all. Like laws of physics and logic suddenly fail around him. Similar to the sensation I had around _that_ girl, only a lot weaker. Why?

I have no idea, and it disturbs me. As, against my will, Robin sends me to make sure that a bunch of students will surely take the chance to skip classes because of a bomb threat (well, they're probably happy now. Surely they think it's just a fake threat, because for some reasons students tend to do that a lot. I'm not sure if I should fell happy or sad about their ignorance), I see that guy with French accent that brought the bomb heading towards the exit.

"Wait" I see with one of my scary voices. Not the scariest, that could freak out even Robin. A tone a bit less scary than my scariest voice, with it's meaning being clearly: 'stop or enter a world of eternal suffering'. Don't imagine now I actually like freaking people out…

Well, except for Beast Boy. Sometimes it's funny to pay him back for all those pranks of his.

Anyway, I had a clear intention with this tone: checking the truth. I think that you know as well as me that a scared person can't hide things so well, especially in his own mind. And with me being an empath…got it?

"How did you find the bomb?" I ask, coming back to my normal tone. Turning around and apparently not sure if to be scared of me or not, the guy said with an almost unnoticeable French accent:

"Uhm…I found it in the attic. People hardly ever go there and…"

"Enough. Go now, and try to don't get into trouble" I replied, shortly. By the time he had finished saying two phrases, I had already convinced myself he was innocent, and saw enough things in his mind. How he thought the attic would be a great place for skipping class. How he first managed to skip class by offering to take an injured colleague to the medical office. How the teacher accepted.

And that weirdness I felt continued in his memories, like a thread linking different moments of time and space. Linking persons. The person previously "linked"? A classmate of his, a blonde girl with excessive make-up called "Diana".

"Friend Raven, are you all right?"

That's Starfire's voice. She sound worried- after all, I think I stood here thinking for a few seconds. Should I tell her what I discovered?

Her eyes tell me "yes".

But I didn't discover anything. I don't know even what kind of power does that girl, Alex, have. So? Explaining would take a long time anyway. Raising my voice a bit to be heard over the sound of the alarm and noise of students, I say briefly:

"I think I found out something. I'm not sure- it may be about that masked girl we saw earlier. And I'd like to investigate, but I'm not sure if it would be proper to leave you without my help even if there's almost nothing we can do right now"

Blinking a few times, the Tamaranian girl replied in the end:

"If you think you found something that can help us defeat the evildoer, then please go. Do not worry; we will make sure that everything is all right around here."

"Thanks" I said, a bit relieved. I knew I could always count on Starfire. Turning around in an aura of dark energy, I disappeared from sight and teleported in another area of the school. Somewhere where the map on the walls pointed out to be a "medical cabinet".

***

Robin's POV

"So, I suppose you want to know the password for stopping the bomb, Robin?"

I didn't answer. After all, what was I supposed to say? Maybe:

'Yes, I've mentioned that already. Now if you don't mind…'

Or

'No, why would I need that for? For saving my life, my friends and hundreds of other people from a painful death? Nah, I'm not in the mood. Maybe some other time'

So I shut up instead. And Slade continued:

"At first I'd expected you'd have less time for this. But Alex did help you a lot, even if you don't realize it. I doubt she realized it either."

"What does she have to do with all this?"

"You'll find out…soon enough. Something is about to begin, Robin. Alex is involved, I am involved, you, the Teen Titans-it's very simple. The keyword, that is. Find it and pass the first test, fail and die"

And the connection closed. On the screen remained, in a corner, just the white digits signaling the minutes towards the explosion.

9:00, 8:59, 8:58.

***

Raven's POV

"Okay. Thank you and stay safe" I said while teleporting again, leaving that blonde girl with excessive make-up at a reasonable distance from the school. Her story was simple- part of it I found it in her mind, part of it she told herself- in the sports class, some random colleague bumped into her while playing football, and she broke her leg. The guy called Jaques offered to bring her to the medical cabinet, but in the same time he used this excuse to skip class. When the alarm started she panicked since she was unable to walk well yet, I appeared and transported her away from the school.

It sounds so simple.

The next link- it's the girl who accidentally bumped into her. I felt it in her mind. But the feeling is fading, like a dream you forget at one minute after you wake up. I remember there was a monk in my homeland of Azrath, who said that we forget dreams because there were never meant to exist in the first place. This is the same case- it has the same…lack of reality.

Is my search even going somewhere?

I use my communicator to phone the others, to make sure they're all right, to check if they need me. BB, Starfire and Cyborg say that they almost finished evacuating. Robin said something like he'll call later. I wonder if he's all right- he sounded nervous, panicked. This shouldn't be. After all (I may sound like I don't care at all, but it's not true. I'm just used to casualties when we're fighting Slade) we have enough time to get everybody away from danger. It would have been better if we had the possibility of throwing the bomb into space, or at least in a deserted area (but Slade thought about that and equipped sensors). So what's the point? Even if the building blows up, it can be reconstructed. Nobody will die; we have more than enough time to make sure everyone will be away. It's just not Slade's style to try to blackmail us with something so worthless.

What is his plan?

***

Robin's POV

Things can never be as simple as we hope.

The building has been evacuated, yes, and everything seems perfect. But one minute after Slade left, he sent a message clarifying the situation.

He's insane. The bomb is…

I have to call the others.

**Confusion should be my name, I know. I'm either very confusing or I just don't know how to write a decent story. In fact, I don't even intend to keep my promise of revealing EVERYTHING in the next chapter, simply because in my mind the story tends to look like a Matryoshka doll- secrets covered in secrets covered in secrets covered in…I think you got it. I'm doing my best to "transcribe" the story out of my head, in the same time according to my ideas and trying to make it interesting for you, readers. I'm afraid I'm a failure at the last part ^^'**


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